“God created us this way for a reason”

– Refilwe Modiselle, 31, @refilwemodiselle

As a child growing up in Joburg, Refilwe Modiselle didn’t pay much attention to having albinism. “It was never discussed at home or among my friends, and I had a big personality,” she recalls. “But as I got older, I became aware of the name calling, whispers, comments on my race and looks, and stares from strangers, which made me question where I fitted within society. And I didn’t know how to fight back.”

All of that changed when a friend who knew the stylist Shaldon Kopman [now designer of Naked Ape], invited her to appear in Y-magazine’s ‘New Millennium’ issue. “I was thrilled to play dress-up for the cameras, but there was more at stake, because that shoot boosted my confidence and opened up modelling for me.”

Refilwe went on to study advertising, where she learnt to be more vocal about her albinism. “I was growing into my own, and I was tired of enduring all the talk as a child,” she says. At the same time she landed a range of gigs, including acting and walking the runway for David Tlale in 2005 (she was the first model with albinism to appear on a runway in SA). As an activist, she has met with Amnesty International and the United Nations.

“And writing under the selfcreated name Vanillablaq, I use social media to challenge stereotypes and to educate the public,” she says. “Getting to this point of self-acceptance has not been easy, but I’m sure God created us this way for a reason.”